Women's Diet: The Physical Red Flags of Eating Disorders

From hair loss to infertility, the internal damage inflicted on the body by eating disorders leaves its marks on the outside too

In pursuit of the thin-is-beautiful ideal peddled by Hollywood and Madison Avenue, most of us have -- at one time or another -- counted calories, embarked on a crash diet, sworn off sweets, or had periods of extreme gym rat-itis.

But let's be clear: There is a big difference between dieting and suffering from an eating disorder.

Eating disorders, like anorexia nervosa and bulimia, are not crash diets; they are serious medical illnesses with underlying psychological issues. Anorexics, for example, have an intense fear of fat and of gaining weight. In addition to severely restricting their food intake, they may exercise obsessively; abuse diet pills, laxatives and diuretics; and/or self-induce vomiting.

And, bulimics, like anorexics, may have distorted body images and a pre-occupation with food. But bulimia is often characterized by repeated cycles of bingeing and purging: Sufferers will eat large amounts of food in a short period of time and then seek to somehow "undo" the damage of the binge, either through vomiting, laxatives or diuretics.

Researchers believe that there are myriad biological, psychological and societal factors that may trigger and shape eating disorders and that they often go hand-in-hand with other psychiatric ailments, such as depression or anxiety. And, while eating disorders are treatable, like any other severe illness, they take a toll on the body.

How prevalent a concern is this? According to the National Eating Disorders Association, in the United States alone, nearly 10 million women (and one million men) are battling an eating disorder. The damage that these eating disorders can inflict will scare you. At least we hope it will.

If you're ready to see what happens to the human body -- inside and out -- when it is denied the nutrients it needs, read on.

While this article only scratches the surface of what is happening with eating disorders, there IS a lot of good information here that will hopefully help people either know when to seek help or know when to try to seek help for a friend or family member.

Eating disorders are very complex diseases and sadly this article doesn't portray them for what they really are..... a serious mental illness. On the other hand.. i did actually find this article to be extremely helpful and interesting when it came to the info on the actual effects and risks of malnutrition and dehydration.

Eating disorders are more about control than body image. If a life is spiraling out of control, food intake is often the only thing a person has any control over. Sadly, there are few places where a person can find help. Insurance will not pay usually until the disease becomes life-threatening. This article is too superficial and doesn't address the real causes. The unfortunate part of eating disorders is that we are so obsessed with admiring those who are very think that anorexia nervosa and bulimia are overlooked or accepted as a way to stay thin.

its alwasy about a healthy diet, butfor the first days ur loosing weight its better to avoid sugar, like donuta chocolates, and all thos stuff, after you lost a fewpounds a chocolate once a week its good!